As expected, this 1st round match up has been a game of inches....We could be down 3-0.....we could be up 3-0. With that being said, I am curious as to what the red wings faithful think this team needs to end the preds chances and step into the second round. As co-worker and I were talking about this today and although I came up with several things t o be successful, I picked these three.

A) stop trying to " generate" chances and CAPITALIZE on chances given: Man, we had a hundred chances on Sunday...Miller had a gaping net, Zetty was stonewalled but really, Rinne is giving us a lot of looks but for whatever reason we are not burying the chances. We have had WAY to many " all mosts" for my liking. Play hard, get into position and hammer it home!

B) Sixty minutes. Can we play an entire game of hockey? We look sleepy and disengaged in the 1st period. At times I have felt like the team has either tried to sit with a lead or seem to realize with 5 minutes left, that we are down one goal and play like wildfire for the last 5 minutes. Try and control the pace and I think we can dominate.

C) don't get suckered into playing their game. Right now Nashville is trying to bully us and then we retaliate. This always seems to result in a stupid penalty. They are hard enough to score on at even stretch, we don't need to tempt fate. They need to play their game and let Nashville adjust to us and p,yang without the puck.

Like I said, here re a hundred more things they should be doing but I thought I'd ask the corps what you would like to see them. Do in game four ( besides win handily)
Thoughts

I very much agree with the OP. May I add to this? how about stop trying to "set up" everything and just drive the net and get to the slot. It'll go a long way there is NO WAY Nashville can hang with a high intensity fast tempo Red Wings

I very much agree with the OP. May I add to this? how about stop trying to "set up" everything and just drive the net and get to the slot. It'll go a long way there is NO WAY Nashville can hang with a high intensity fast tempo Red Wings

Yes totally agree kylee....we seem to want to have every person touch the puck or something.....drive the net, let it rip and the rebounds are coming out ( addendum....avoid trapper hand!) Great point!

1) Stay out of the box, Babcock put it best when he said our best players are getting worn out running around just trying to throw the puck down the rink. Frankly it's a miracle we have only given up one goal in 16 short-handed situations, especially with Helm out of the lineup.

2) Crash the net, I'm so tired of seeing every Wings possession making 7-8 passes around the perimeter and settling for point shots and bad angle shots with no one screening the goalie or even close enough to the net to have a chance at the rebound.

3) Be the aggressor, we have been spending way too much time reacting.

it's been mentioned a couple times already, but we've got to crash the net. Most of our goals have come from rebounds flying into our hands, and we need that to happen more. Rinne's picking everything out of the net and the preds are picking apart our passes, just hammer it on net and pick up the rebound! Enough of the fancy plays and just make it happen.

I think a couple big ones have already been mentioned. Less time wasting by trying to make the perfect scoring opportunity; those waste time and energy and they haven't even been going in the net. Take what Nashville gives and bust the seams open from there.
We need more net presence and rebound-hunger. I'm tired of watching the Preds get two to three shots on net per attack while it seems 50% of the time the Wings can't even get one. I see some perimeter play, a shot that goes wide, is blocked, or Rinne rebounds it away, then suddenly the Preds are already in the neutral zone with the puck, racing toward Jimmy.
Consistency. I think I've seen this one maybe three times the whole season so I'm not sure if it's even realistic to ask for it.
Special teams has been the silver lining for us, but we're playing with fire. We (Franzen) have been taking too many stupid penalties, whether you want to include referee incompetence or not. The Preds' power play has looked dangerous and has exploited our PK, but they haven't had the puck luck to collect the tally.
Additionally, we need to start generatin power play opportunities, and not rely on s***ty reffing to hand us two minutes every so often. This is where speed and tenacity and hunger come into play, especially in the Predator's zone.

The Wings have all the tools they need to close this out in 6. Whether they want to use those tools is entirely up to them.

1. Just score on the chances given. Stop finding ways for it not to go in.
2. When having the puck in the middle of the ice, 10 feet from the net, you should probably shoot.
3. Skate hard! No coasting. Make a decision and play the decision hard. No half in, half out.

Notice I say nothing about Nashville. Because if the Wings play to their best of their ability, it does not matter what Nashville does. The refs? Another matter entirely. But that being even, the Wings have a level that I haven't seen Nashville reach.

Edited by Hockeytown Red Wings, 16 April 2012 - 06:00 PM.

"During Robert Lang’s time in Detroit, he caused me anguish. Other times he brought me and my family great joy. Robert Lang occasionally coasts, and spends time searching for the best pane of glass to best view the reflection of his flowing mullet. Other times he is a strong-armed force with the puck. I never knew what to expect from Robert Lang. He is The Enigma. " - A2Y

1) Come out strong and play a full sixty minutes of high energy hockey
2) Match their physicality with some of our own so they know we aren't backing down
3) Get an early lead. Nashville is a defensive team so it will be a lot easier to stop them from coming back than to play from behind.

*edit*

4) Throw puck at the damn net. Stop trying to set up the fancy passes. They are all over it. Throw the puck at the net and grind away will be the only way to win.